Originally Posted by
saddlesores
i think with a steel frame, i'd want to stick with a steel fork.
I build in steel so I'm on your side with my personal bikes. But we are a diminishing portion of the buying public.
(of course i'm biased, i mount steel forks on my alu frame bikes.) as to the drift away from water bottles, they seem to have additional mounts on the forks for more bottles or salsa cages.
And these 3 boss cages are more often about gear and bikepacking (a term I am not fond of BTW).
if designed as a loaded touring bike, i'd expect a good portion of the riders would want undertube bosses - either for water or fuel, or as i use for repair kit bottle.
Agreed but easy to do before under tube bosses became expected and still easy to do now.
for a $700 frame, i'd expect a better offering. thinking trek didn't actually design this bike, more like they took whatever the taiwan factory was pumping out at $20 a piece wholesale,
You don't seem to have a grip on how bikes are designed by big companies. There's a LOT of $ at stake in design, production, distribution. Any chance of lost sales is a real issue that gets people let go.
Perhaps true for the tiny companies that don't have design teams or much at stake. Not my experience with companies like Trek, Specialized, Cannondale...
not sure about eu/usa, but i haven't seen a frame fit pump in well over a decade. just checked nashbar; they no have. nor do the few local shops here. T
Too bad. I've bought Zefal HPXs just a couple of years ago here in the US. Was a great pump and still is. That bottom line, on line, companies can't find a lower cost source for as good a pump is their customer's loss.
my suggestion....24 spokes....was a reference to the infamous 920. the article claims the racks (front at least) is/are bespoke. not necessary of course, but i'd like to see more attention to detail in the struts....just personal preference.
OK. To some specific details are important. I just don't have this aspect as mine and can't given my size.
about the thruskewthang... i don't like that it's a proprietary thingamabob.....from online comments it appears you can't use any old skewer, so if something breaks (regardless how improbable)....do you buy a new fork and continue your tour?
Not a wrong commit but my experience suggests a minor possibility. But that's like breaking a frame or having an incident that damages the bike beyond use. A risk we all take when we ride away from population. We don't hesitate to tour with those possibilities so I wouldn't do so based on possible through axle breakage.
The obvious solution for your preferences is to not use this bike. As one who has taken that path on a number of other design/product choices I empathize[. However I also have to have an open mind to the shifting landscape of products. I bought my wife a 520 a few years ago, before I had the time to build her a proper touring frame. Maybe when we sell it the used value will have begun to achieve cult status
Andy /QUOTE]